Serving Salt Lake City, UT & Nearby Areas
(385) 438-3591
Serving Salt Lake City, UT & Nearby Areas
(385) 438-3591
Because half the roof is only visible from inside. The attic is where ventilation and the condition of the roof sheathing can actually be assessed. Both are code items your contractor carries responsibility for. Skip that look and every unknown turns into a surprise cost after the tear-off starts.
Let the estimator into the attic, because that is where the unpriced surprises get found before you sign.
Ventilation and sheathing condition are code items that cannot be assessed from the roof surface or the ground.
Clear a path to your attic hatch before the estimate appointment.
In Utah your roofer can check the attic today while you are deciding, or check it the morning your roof is already torn off. Those are the only two options.
Mattie Tueller, Master Roofing
Two things that change the price of the job. The first is your attic ventilation. That's measured by what intake and exhaust actually exist relative to the attic's square footage. The second is the condition of the roof sheathing, the wood decking everything else is nailed to. That's visible from below long before it is visible from above.
None of that can be seen from a ladder, from a drone photograph, or from walking the roof surface. The information simply is not available up there, no matter how carefully someone walks your roof.
Because ventilation is a building code item. The contractor is the one accountable for the finished roof meeting code. That is not a preference a company can waive because a homeowner would rather they did not come in. The check has to happen, and the only real question is when.
A roofer can look now, while you are deciding and comparing bids, or look on the morning the roof is torn off and the decking is exposed. Both produce the same finding. Only one of them produces it at a moment when you still have options and other quotes to compare against.
Finding it now means it is a line on an estimate you can weigh. Finding it later means it is a phone call from your driveway with your roof already open. That's the worst possible position anyone can negotiate from. Nobody shops around with their decking exposed to the weather.
That is a completely reasonable instinct, and a good company will respect it rather than argue. What it should also do is tell you plainly what that decision costs: a bid built around unknowns, with the ventilation and sheathing assessed only after the work begins. That usually means change orders.
That last one matters most if you decline. A bid that says in writing which items were not verified is honest about its own limits. It protects you later if the number moves once work begins. Ask for it in those words.
It converts guesses into numbers. Decking replacement, ventilation work. Correcting what a previous roof got wrong are the three items that most often appear as surprise costs mid-project. All three are assessable from the attic before anyone commits to anything.
Master Roofing carries an Expert Estimation Guarantee for this reason: on a full assessment, an item the estimator misses is the company's cost rather than a surprise charge added to yours. That guarantee only works if the estimator was actually allowed to assess everything. That's the practical reason the attic visit matters to both sides of the transaction rather than only to ours. Nobody can stand behind an assessment they were not permitted to make.
Master Roofing gets asked this a lot in Utah, usually politely and sometimes not, and I understand it completely. Plenty of people have had a contractor in their house who should not have been there. The instinct to keep strangers out of your home is a healthy one.
Here is the part I want you to have. If we cannot see in your attic, we do not know what is going on with your ventilation and we do not know whether your roof sheathing is up to code. Those unknowns do not disappear because nobody looked at them. They just move, from our estimate to your invoice.
Your roofer can check your attic today while you are deciding, or check it the morning your roof is already torn off. Those are the only two options. So if you would rather not have anyone wandering your house, say so and set the terms. Walk them to the hatch yourself, stand there while they look, and ask for photos. That gets you the accurate number without giving up anything you were not willing to give.
This article is general information about Utah roofs, not an assessment of yours. Every roof is different, and no article can tell you what is actually happening on your specific house. Have a licensed roofing contractor look at it in person before you act on anything here.
It happens, especially with vaulted or cathedral ceilings where there is no attic space to enter. A roofing company should tell you plainly that the ventilation and sheathing could not be assessed. Should write that limitation onto the estimate rather than pricing as though they had looked. Some conditions can be inferred from outside, but inference is not the same as assessment.
Usually only a few minutes at the hatch with a flashlight, unless something turns up that warrants a closer look. The estimator is checking for intake and exhaust, the condition of the decking underside, staining from past leaks. Any signs of moisture. It is a short and specific look at one part of your house rather than a search through your home.
You are welcome to, and many homeowners do. It is also a good chance to see for yourself what they are describing, since a photograph of stained decking means more once you have looked at the same thing. If you would rather not climb up, ask them to photograph what they find so you have a record independent of their description.
A drone is really useful for the roof surface, especially on steep or high roofs. It produces good documentation. What it cannot do is see the underside of your decking or count your intake vents. That's because both of those are inside the building. Treat drone photography as a supplement to an attic assessment rather than a substitute for one.
Yes, and it is a good sign rather than a nosy one. Previous repairs, when the roof was last done, where leaks have appeared before, and whether the upstairs runs hot all point toward specific things worth checking. A roofer asking those questions is building a diagnosis. One who asks nothing at all is measuring square footage and pricing shingles off a chart.
We're here to see what's going on with your roof. A real assessment starts with your history and your attic, not a number from the driveway. You'll get a straight answer about what's up there, what it needs, and what it costs. Sometimes the honest answer is: your roof looks great.